Course Syllabus

Michael Saylor and Robert Breedlove discuss Bitcoin through the lenses of energy, technology, and anthropology.

This course includes the following units:

• Unit 1: Historical and Philosophical Foundations of Bitcoin: Unraveling Human History and Technological Progress
• Unit 2: Energy, Money, and the Evolution of Digital Power
• Unit 3: Resilience, Function, and Philosophical Implications of Bitcoin
• Unit 4: Transformative Money and the Evolution of Sociopolitical Systems
• Unit 5: Bitcoin's Path to Immortality: Exploring Security, Evolution, and Transformative Applications

Upon successful completion of this course, you will be able to:

• Describe the intersections between energy, technology, and anthropology, both historically and in the modern context of Bitcoin;
• Detail the claim that Bitcoin is a unique store of value, a new method of transferring monetary energy through time and space at levels of efficiency and speed unseen in human history;
• Differentiate Bitcoin from other crypto assets;
• Explain the attributes of Bitcoin that make it antifragile through the lenses of energy, economics, politics, hardware and software, environmentalism, militarism, war, philanthropy, and more; and
• Understand why Bitcoin is a singular monetary innovation that cannot be replicated.

Throughout this course, you will also see learning outcomes in each unit. You can use those learning outcomes to help organize your studies and gauge your progress.

This course's primary learning materials are articles, lectures, and videos.

All course materials are free to access and can be found in each unit of the course. Pay close attention to the notes that accompany these course materials, as they will tell you what to focus on in each resource and will help you understand how the learning materials fit into the course as a whole. You can also see a list of all the learning materials in this course at this link.

Some parts of this course may have been created or reviewed with the support of artificial intelligence (AI). To make sure you receive accurate, high-quality, and academically sound learning materials, all AI-assisted content is carefully checked and approved by Saylor Academy's faculty and subject matter experts.

Only the final exam is considered when awarding you a grade for this course. To pass this course, you will need to earn a grade of 70% or higher on the final exam.

Your score on the exam will be calculated as soon as you complete it. Be sure to study in between each attempt! If you do not pass the exam, you will not complete this course or receive a certificate of completion. You can attempt the exam as many times as you want.

There are end-of-unit assessments in this course that are designed to help you study and do not factor into your final course grade. You can take them as many times as you want until you understand the concepts they cover.

You can see all of these assessments at this link.

The certificate earned by passing this self-paced course displays the program hours you completed and continuing education credits (CEUs). CEUs document successful completion of courses that are designed to improve the knowledge and skills of working adults. Many industries value CEUs, and now your certificate reflects them clearly, and they may be used to support career advancement or to meet professional licensing standards. This course contains 2.6 CEUs.

ECON135: What Is Money? is a self-paced course, meaning you can decide when to start and complete the course. We estimate the "average" student will take 26 hours to complete. We recommend studying at a comfortable pace and scheduling your study time in advance.

Learning new material can be challenging, so here are a few study strategies to help you succeed:

• Take notes on terms, practices, and theories. This helps you understand each concept in context and provides a refresher for later study.
• Test yourself on what you remember and how well you understand the concepts. Reflecting on what you've learned improves long-term memory retention.

This course is delivered entirely online. You will need access to a computer or web-capable mobile device and consistent internet access to view or download resources and complete auto-graded assessments and the final exam.

To access the full course, including assessments and the final exam, log into your Saylor Academy account and enroll in the course. If you don't have an account, you can create one for free here. Note that tracking progress and taking assessments require you to log in.

For more details and guidance, please review our complete Technical Requirements and our student Help Center.

Optional Saylor Academy Mobile App

You can access all course features directly from your mobile browser, but if you have limited internet connectivity, the Saylor Academy mobile app provides an option to download course content for offline use. The app is available for iOS and Android devices.

This course is entirely free to enroll in and access. All course materials, including textbooks, videos, webpages, and activities, are available at no charge. This course also contains a free final exam and a free course completion certificate.